As the owner of a St. Charles bicycle shop, Hal Honeyman has been adapting conventional bicycles to meet the needs of physically challenged customers on and off for 15 years.
But in 1993, with the birth of his premature triplets, his perspective changed.
One of the triplets, Jacob, was born with cerebral palsy, and Honeyman and his wife, Julie, were faced with the needs and frustrations involved in getting their son mobile.
It was, in part, out of these frustrations that Creative Mobility was launched.
“It took an entire year to get my son into a wheelchair that was properly fitted,” Honeyman said. “I thought it could have been done quicker, better and easier.”
In the developmental stage for two years, Creative Mobility is now a fledgling company dedicated to serving the transportation, recreational and general mobility needs of adults and children with disabilities.
Wheelchair choices generally have been limited. A chair usually is ordered through a medical equipment company or from a vendor who visits hospitals, clinics or rehabilitation centers. The vendor often has one or two models.
On the same site as Honeyman’s bicycle shop, the Bike Rack, Creative Mobility is in a separate showroom to give customers privacy. Ten demo wheelchairs, including top brands such as Quickie (the No. 1 brand of wheelchairs), Action and Invacare, are on display for clients to see and test.
But mobility doesn’t come cheap. While a basic wheelchair runs around $300, a specially fitted chair costs $3,000. Motorized chairs can run $20,000. Creative Mobility offers some models for rental from $50 a month.
Though insurance generally picks up most of the cost of a chair, it can take a while to get the insurer to pay. “We want to streamline the process to make it easier on the customer,” said Honeyman.
Picking out a wheelchair isn’t as simple as it sounds. The components have to fit a person’s needs. Seat cushions may be filled with foam, gel, fluid and/or air to provide stability, distribute weight and prevent sores. Back, pelvis, leg, foot and head support also are important.
“Proper fitting can affect respiration, digestion, even a person’s self image,” said Honeyman.
Barbara Jungbluth, a physical therapist/assistive technology practitioner, is a seating and wheeled mobility specialist and handles the fittings at Creative Mobility.
“The goal is to find the position where clients function best in all aspects of their lives, where they are the most independent,” said Jungbluth. “For children, that includes school and play accessibility. For adults, that includes work, community and sports accessibility.”
For Danny Sipple, a 10-year-old with spina bifida, a customized Quickie GP did the trick.
“The chair is his legs,” said Danny’s mom, Kim, of South Elgin. “He plays catch and basketball in it, sits at his desk in school, brushes his teeth and plays the piano.”
“Hal is very caring and thorough,” added Kim. “At other places, we dealt with uncaring salespeople who knew nothing about having a child in a wheelchair. Hal does. Danny is now back with a smile on his face.”
Eventually, the Honeymans hope to be certified by the National Registry of Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers, making them qualified to fit wheelchair consumers. It will take a year of training for Honeyman to get his certification.
Creative Mobility carries sport and recreational chairs, too. While a couple of these sports chairs are on the floor, Honeyman hopes to stock more as his business grows. For now, he can order an array of other sports chairs.
Shadow, a division of Quickie, is one of the manufacturers available through Honeyman. Shadow designs chairs for sports, including basketball and tennis. (The tennis chair has three wheels and a clamp-on tube to prevent the chair from tipping over. There’s additional framework in front for maneuverability.)
The Shadow Heat, made of lightweight chrome-moly, is created for rugby, hockey or other high-impact sports. (Basketball chairs have three wheels that are adjustable as is seat height. The chairs also squeeze to hold the occupant in place. It is quick and responsive with more framework designed for offensive and defensive moves. The four-wheel rugby chair is designed for more contact with a sort of a cage and bigger footplate guards. Bars extend out from side to protect occupant.)
The Shadow Kan Ski allows a disabled individual to water ski. These specialty chairs start at $2,000.
Honeyman often makes house calls. He believes a team approach is important, especially when outfitting children. Family members, care-givers and physical therapists are encouraged to get involved. The aim is not only to put an individual in the right chair but also to make the customizing process positive.
“People with disabilities just want to do what everybody else does,” said Honeyman. And that’s why he has been customizing bicycles for the physically challenged for years.
Simply adapting standard bicycles can be the answer for some. Honeyman was able to allow a 7-year-old boy with cerebral palsy to ride with his father on a tandem by attaching a specially made seat-back that supports the boy’s upper body. Wheelchair footplates with metal fittings were added to the pedals so the boy’s feet wouldn’t fall out.
When that won’t work, Creative Mobility has 10 demo models of adaptive bikes, including hand-powered trikes, which has a crank in front of the seats that’s turned to make the pedals go, and conventional foot-powered ones styled like recumbents from manufacturers such as Action, Comfort Cycle and Freedom Concepts.
“Some of these cycles can provide basic transportation while others are lightweight, high-performance cycles for the more serious athlete,” said Honeyman.
According to Chris Peterson, manager of product development for Action, adaptive bikes have been on the market for 20 years.
For those with balance and stability problems, a foot-powered Comfort Cycle may be a good choice because of its lightweight design, joystick controls and 49 gears. It can even be adjusted to be hand-controlled for steering, braking and shifting from one side. Made of filet-braised, lightweight steel, it sells for $2,400.
A heavier foot-powered ReTrike may suit those intending to go on short jaunts because of its weight. It sells for $650.
A hand-powered Shadow Mach 3, for the performance-minded, offers 12 or 36 speeds. Built for speed and maneuverability, the cycle has a sliding seat for easier transfers. Prices start at $2,100 for the 12-speed.
Jarrett Knyal of Palatine was left a paraplegic in an accident 13 years ago. He also has had his left hand amputated. A marathon wheelchair racer, he is in the market for a racing wheelchair such as a Shadow T-Tube Racer (about $2,300) and an aerodynamic, lightweight racing handcycle such as an Action Excelerator XLT (around $2,000).
“Most medical equipment suppliers don’t know about sports,” said the 34-year-old computer multimedia graphic designer for Andersen Consulting. “They (Creative Mobility) sell everything from commode chairs to racing wheelchairs, with usually only one to choose from. Hal has a sensibility along these ends. He takes his expertise in conventional bikes and applies that to people with disabilities.”
“To see someone smile who is properly fitted in a chair or give someone the freedom to ride a bicycle who hasn’t been able to do so makes it incredibly rewarding,” Honeyman said.
